Life's funny in certain ways. I was born and raised in Trenton, NJ, and while I knew we had a dope Hip-Hop scene, I had neither the age nor the funds to really explore it. I ended up finding out about how rich my hometown (and surrounding area) was with talent, especially at a job I had a few years back. I became tight with a cat who knew YZ, Young Star and all those heads, a cat who put me onto #9 and a slew of other sick MCs who got overlooked. One of the heads he put me onto was Bobbie Fine, and I actually wanted to interview him years back, but for one reason or another it never happened. With the tragic death of Trenton Hip-Hop legend, Tony D, I made good on that wish to interview B-Fine, and now provide you with this look into Trenton Hip-Hop past, and where Bobby Fine is going...

khal: First off, can you state your name and affiliations for the heads who might not be aware of who you are?

Bobbie Fine: These days, I go by Bobbie Fine (aka B-Fine for my crate diggers and 90’s Hip-Hop heads), but it’s all the same. YZ gave me the name B-Fine in like ‘84 or ‘85. I was like “isn’t dude from Full Force named B-Fine?” and he was like “I don’t know, but he ain’t you, the ladies love you”. So there it is LOL.

khal: Thanks. Now, you’ve been involved in the Hip-Hop scene since the age of 15. I imagine you grew up listening to the music, but when did you first realize that you could write and spit with your peers?

Bobbie Fine: Before we did YZ’s first album (Sons of the Father), I was the emcee dude in my area of Jersey. Me and Z’s brother Young Star, we’re the ESD Posse from grammar school. We used to battle any and everyone we could. I was the more vocal, big mouth of us & Star was the cat that would punch you in the mouth after the battle if there was a problem. I’d really been writing rhymes and freestyling since 4th or 5th grade, when I first heard “The Breaks” by Kurtis Blow. So I always knew I was an emcee.

khal: Speaking of peers, who would you say were your peers in the game?

Bobbie Fine: Central Jersey was dope in the 80’s, especially Trenton. There was a cat named MC Force who I really looked up to, and Almighty was a beast to me back then. Of course, YZ, and when he was in Too Def with G-Rock, PRT, Blvd Mosse, MOB, Tony D (RIP) and Too Kool Posse were all cats that I admire. Even some heads around my way like Saladeen (my OG big homie from AC), Lester Brown, Mark Swain and even my younger brother Chill aka #9 (RIP) and his crew at the time are all that made me love Hp-Hp and want to be a part of it.

khal: You rolled with the central New Jersey crew heavy when you were first getting put on. What do you think about that geographical area made Trenton and the surrounding area different than the scenes in Philly or NY? Do you think you’d be a different MC if you grew up somewhere else?

Bobbie Fine: What made Central Jersey so dope was that you’ve got both Philly & New York’s energy, with just the right amount of originality back then. We respected Philly & NY and loved their sounds, but only borrowed just enough to sprinkle onto our own sound and style. I’d be a completely different emcee, recording artist producer & performer if I grew up anywhere else. True school of hard knocks stomping gounds.

khal: I’d be remiss if I didn’t speak to you about the recent passing of Tony D. He’s known as a legend in the Trenton Hip-Hop scene, and his status is certified. I’ve seen you speak on him as both your producer and your mentor. How did you first meet Tony?

Bobbie Fine: YZ was originally a dancer. He and G-Rock used to go to NY and dance at the club, and they were sick with it. His brother and I were the rap cats, so when Z and Tony met and started conceptualizing him recording music, Z used to always talk him up, so I couldn’t wait to meet him. One day, he finally took us over to meet Tone, and I remember walking down this long hallway, to where his bedroom was in his Mom’s house out in Ewing, and there was a long brown table with his drum machine on it. I remember he played me this beat and I spit something, and he was like “we gotta get him in the studio, too”. I was amped and I couldn’t believe someone doing music for real finally validated what I’d already known. He gave me a couple of beats to write to, and the first song we recorded was called “I’m The Principal”. It was one of those songs that was just Hip-Hop, raw. I wish I had a copy of it, but the sound is imprinted in my brain. I was like 14, young and dumb, and from that moment Tony made me realize that I could actually do something with myself as an artist.

khal: I know your crew, Blaque Spurm, worked with Tony, and you put some work in on the Crusaders For Real Hip-Hop project. How much work did you put in with Tony D? Do you have any tracks that never saw the light of day, or beat tapes of his that never got used?

Bobbie Fine: Well, during and after YZ’s first album, I put in work as Z’s hype man, wrote and co-wrote a couple of joints, so I was heavily involved in the album, which tightened my bond with Tone. When he and Z started falling out, I was in the middle of it on stand by, waiting for my day to come. Tone and I started to record joints for my 1st group conception, The Funk Family, which we were first approached by Dante Ross when he was at Elektra, but we ended up at a new label distributed by Interscope called Poetic Groove. We recorded an entire album and released 2 singles (“Think B4 U Step” b/w “Disperse” and “Anyway”, produced by the Baka Boyz) towards the end of our stay on PG. I was featured on most of the projects Tone put together back then, and we were as thick as thieves. I didn’t make a move without talking to him, and he was involved in my deal with Blaque Spurm and American Recordings via a mutual homie, Dan Charnas, who was an A&R at the time. I made some alliances in Houston from my days of touring with YZ, so the BS album was half Tone and half some new production friends of mine. I was hesitant at first, bringing in different producers, and thought Tone would think I didn’t want his sound anymore, but he loved the direction I was going in and welcomed it. We recorded the album and dropped a couple of singles, but ultimately were unhappy with the way Rick Rubin was dealing with his Hip-Hop acts at the time, so we got a release. Tone and I have so much material and I’m grateful that I got so many chances to work with him and be creative. He taught me more than I would have ever learned on my own, and made me, in so many ways, the person I am today.

khal: When was the last time you saw Tony? When did you last speak with him?

Bobbie Fine: Tone lost a lot of weight after getting out of prison, so the last time I saw him was before he went in. We’ll talk every couple months, just to check in and see how each others families are and if we still have love for the music. We talked last year about releasing all of the old tunes online and even putting out some singles. He hit me up on Facebook a couple of weeks ago and said he would hit on the weekend. Last week I had a show here in Houston, and performed this joint called “My 1st Love” which is a dedication to Hip-Hop over a Tony D beat. The next day, Tone was heavy on my heart, but I didn’t call him. My homie Dre, who was close with Tone, called me that evening and when I heard his voice, I knew it was about Tone.

khal: What are some of the tools or gems that you learned from Tony?

Bobbie Fine: The biggest lesson I’ve learned from Tone is not to compromise yourself or your music for anything or anyone. Tone did what he did because he didn’t care what anyone else thought about him as an artist. Watching him over the years tap the drum pads and make so many dope instrumentals made me want to start making beats of my own. When he told me I was a dope producer is when I started calling myself one. Before that I was just a beat maker.

khal: OK, so getting back to you, you spent a lot of time dropping cameos on a host of projects, from the Fu-Schnickens to the State of Emergency project. What would you say was your favorite guest feature and why?

Bobbie Fine: My very first cameo was on a remix with YZ called “In The Party”; this was also my introduction as the next cat from the camp to pop, so that was big. The fact that Z wanted me on the joint and that it was, I believe, a B-side on one of his singles was a really big deal.

khal: In your travels, you took a liking to Houston, Texas, and ended up staying out there. What was it about Houston that drew you to the city?

Bobbie Fine: It’s a city, but it’s really a big ass suburb and I like that. I love the gritty NY and the hectic LA, but HTX is just laid back and has a calm about that I needed, coming from Jersey. Artists like Royal Flush (aka Uckfe Ouye), Bun and UGK, Ghetto Boyz, Devin and the Odd Squad and so many other really talented underground cats let me know immediately that Hip-Hop was definitely alive in the South.

khal: Not knocking Houston MCs at all, but there are obvious differences to the way their MCs rhyme and how it’s done in the East. Did you ever find it difficult to get respect in the Hip-Hop circles down there?

Bobbie Fine: Absolutely not. I’ve always maintained a really good balance of being able to run with the coming down, grippin’ grain rapper folk as well as the backpack Hip-Hop heads in the city. I respect both hustles, and I am versatile, so I can hang with the best of both worlds.

khal: What’s going on with you today - do you have any albums on the way? What’s Ambidextrous Music all about?

Bobbie Fine: We produce music for networks. That’s our bread and butter. Fox Sports Net is our biggest client, but this year we plan on stepping up our game and pursuing some other major networks. We release projects every couple of years, just for the love of staying creative and letting folk know we’re still relevant. I’m working on a project with a partner of mine from Portland named KP (formerly of the group Pros & Cons). We have a group called Good Biz, and we’re putting the finishing touches on the album this month. I have another solo album up my sleeve that I want to release after the GB smoke clears, so we’re still at it. Future plans are a studio in Portland that’s being built right now, and possibly some touring this summer with the release of the GB album. We’re also starting a management company, so you’ll be hearing some new artists we’re working with really soon. Oh and we just did a deal with YZ to release all of the old material online. The release date is April 28th, so you’ll be able to log on to any music site and get The Funk Family, Blaque Spurm, my solo albums, #9 album and a bunch more.

khal: Do you tour regularly?

Bobbie Fine: I gig every once and a while, nothing consistent, but my dream is to go on a world tour before I hang it up. Working on that.

khal: Do you keep in contact with heads like YZ and the rest of your fam from the golden era?

Bobbie Fine: Z’s my brother from another mother. I talk to him all the time and still play a small part in what he’s doing. We give each other advice, and he’s a mentor of mine. I run into just about everyone online, and I keep in touch with a lot of the cats that I still look up to and admire.

khal: What would you like Bobbie Fine’s legacy to be?

Bobbie Fine: That I made good music, stayed true to myself and didn’t take the bait. I can make money anywhere, but I can’t change what I put out there for ears to listen to, so at the end of the day my kids respect that man I am and I can look in the mirror and know I didn’t just rap.

khal: Do you have any final thoughts or shoutouts to kick before we wrap this up?

Bobbie Fine: Without my big brother Pum, I couldn’t have lasted this long, so thank you for being my support system. To my wife, thanks for understanding that I was in love with Hip-Hop first, but it doesn’t mean I don’t love you and the kids, and to Tony Depula & Borne “#9” Humbert, keep smiling down on me and continue to show me the way through this journey in music. Both of you have contributed to who I am and what I represent. RIP. Oh and haters… choke on a fat one. LOL! Audi!!!

For more information on Bobbie Fine and his current works, hit the following sites:

Wordsmith & I.N.C The Poet "On The Rocks": Here's another leak from the forthcoming Baltimore Martini album from cross-Atlantic collaborators Wordsmith and I.N.C; I've heard the disc, and its phenomenal. RTD stamp on this one, all day.

Articulate & Pendragon "Short & Sweet" (prod. by NasTAY TraXXX): Two of Bmore's lyrical juggernauts go for broke on this one. If you like this lil' taste they give you, keep it locked for more material from both!

Mr. Lif's always been one of my favorite MCs, for the simple fact that he has a dope balance of politics and raw skills throughout his body of work. Amazon is saying that his forthcoming album, I Heard It Today, is set to drop April 21st, but I'm hearing other dates. In any case, it's coming... check out the tracklist for this magnum opus (along with some liner notes from Lif himself).

1. ‘Welcome to the World’ (prod by Batsauce) - This song was inspired by all the emotions I felt when it was formally announced that the U.S. economy collapsed. This song is meant to capture the fear, paranoia, and angst so many of us felt as our financial futures became completely up for grabs.2. ‘What About Us?’ (prod by Batsauce) was written as a response to the passing of the initial 700 billion dollar "Bailout" bill.3. ‘Breathe’ ft Bahamadia (prod by Batsauce) presented a great opportunity to work with a legend. I was amped when Bahamadia agreed to be a part of this song. Our focus on this song was to capture the all too familiar sentiments of daily stress we all feel.4. ‘Collapse the Walls’ (prod by Edan co produced by Cut Chemist) was born from one of many great conversations I've had with Edan. While discussing the ills of society, we came to the conclusion that the goal really is to transcend all the stresses of our society in search of a healthier way of life. This song is an attempt to achieve freedom and peace of mind through the power of the imagination.5. ‘Folklore’ ft Dumbtron and Vinnie Paz (prod by Batsauce) expand on the notions of redefining reality touched upon in "Collapse the Walls". The goal for each MC was to be as vivid as possible with no regard to any boundaries. The "walls" are officially collapsed as all four of us display the power of imagination through free form verses.6. ‘Police Brutality’ (scene) (prod by Ray Fernandes (skit) co produced by Decaye) - This comes off as a mistaken identity incident. However, the cops are actually beating me because I have been sighted as a threat for spreading the radical ideals expressed in ‘Collapse the Walls’ and ‘Folklore’.7. ‘Gun Fight’ ft Metro (prod by J-Zone) - Metro and I explore a range of issues pertaining to police brutality and imprisonment.8. ‘PNN’ (prod by Paten Locke aka Therapy co produced by Nik Jhatakia) - My boy Cas calls me from jail and I immediately rally resources to regain his freedom.9. ‘Hatred’ (prod by Mr. Lif) deals with the issue of self hatred in the Black community, and rallies people of colour toward the immeasurable power that can be unlocked through self esteem.10. ‘Homecoming’ (scene) (prod by Mr. Lif) - Cas finally gets out of jail, so we threw a welcome home party for him.11. ‘Head High’ (prod by Paten Locke aka Therapy) was written during the initial conflict between Barack Obama and Jeremiah Wright. It was depressing to see the same "crabs in a barrel" mentality that far too many of us act out in the Black community being acted out on the world stage against Obama. The situation lead me to pack a bowl, sit back, and think about the world.12. ‘I Heard It Today’ (prod by Willie Evans Jr.) - The "housing crisis" is proof or the harsh reality that nothing is sacred. The American government allowed big business to gamble with people's ability to shelter themselves. I wrote this song to represent the voices of those adversely affected.13. ‘The Sun’ (prod by Headnodic) is a song meant to provide inspiration and hope for people who lost their homes and for all of us struggling through these difficult times.14. ‘Dawn’ (prod by Willie Evans Jr.) - A reminder to live life to the fullest.

I love that he has a running narrative throughout, kind of like I, Phantom. Grab this when it drops!

I know many of you only focus on that "new" shit, and I admit, most of the music posted here is of that new-new variety, but I also pride myself in giving respect where its due, and Tony D is one of those who deserves every ounce of respect heeped upon him, from producing what's definitely Trenton's finest Hip-Hop moment, "Rock Dis Funky Joint", but a host of other joints for various artists, as well as being jacked by artists like Naughty By Nature and Heavy D. He is a true Trenton legend, and will be sorely missed.

Shouts to Andrew at FSD for dropping that new mixtape from Rhymefest, The Manual, which features a slew of Scram Jones-produced material. My shit "RNQ" (prod. by DJ Premier) is on there, too. Don't Sleep!

I linked back up with my man Lefty (1 half of the bay area hip-hop group, the Bash Bros) to bring you the latest installment of his Gangland street album series. Volume 3, The Young Misguided, is a fresh, original take on hip-hop. With so much repetitive music nowadays, it’s good to hear someone taking risks and doing some different shit. Bay Area stand up!!

DJ Vadim ft. Pugs Atomz "Saturday": I know its only Monday, but I've got the soundtrack to your weekend EARLY! This is taken from Vadim's U Can't Lurn Imaginashun; this drops on 12" and iTunes on April 9th, I'm told. Blast this one, early!

Junclassic "Stop Watch" (prod. by Kid Hum): Let's keep this RTD All-Star-centric for a minute. NY's Junclassic is working over some beats from Hawaii (by way of CO)'s Kid Hum, and the shit I've heard so far is illy. They got an EP coming sooner rather than later (hopefully?), so keep it locked for this shit.

Shouts to the homey Taliesin for hitting me with this special mix of his. He's been out in Budapest since January, and he's on a UK tour in May. He digs the electro and Hip-Hop sounds, and cooked up a slick promo mix for those of you in the following areas:

May UK Tour (with a quick trip to Austria)02. Sibin Festival DUBLIN09 The Old Bell DERBY13 Hardknock at The Social LDN15 Absolutely Free Festival Graz, Austria16- Nuke Them All LDN23- Cosies Bristol

MAGr "Feelin' Us" (prod. by Tha S Ence): Damn, when these 3 get together, shit pops off! Shouts to my fam at Public Axis for lacing me with these joints. These tracks will not be found on their No News Is Good News album that's set to drop, but consider this as a dope intro to what they're working with.

Been going through Normal Bias' collection of Club Crush/Raw Deal, AKA the WPRB show that Tony D and company used to host back in the early '90s. Here's a damn-near 11 minute freestyle session with some of the flyest rappers out of the Trenton, NJ area. Going IN over that fresh EPMD. Nothing more needs to be said, except for GRAB THIS NOW!

I grew up in the church. Also grew up listening to Jay-Z. So this project made perfect sense to me. I've always been amazed at the untapped samples that are prevalent in gospel music! After telling friends and showing some tracks to some friends, they became curious and wanted to hear more. What started off for my ears only is now a project available for free download.

On a sidenote, I'd like to state that it is in no way my intention to offend or disrespect Gospel music with this project in any way. Rather, it is my attempt to pay homage to two genres of music that have molded my musical taste and stylings today.

Almighty & KD Ranks "Trenton Where We Live" (prod. by Tony D): I know you're asking - "why the HELL are you uploading 17 year old tracks biggin' up the capital city of New Jersey?"... I'll tell you. I'm hearing rumors that Tony D passed away in a car accident, and it's crazy. Dude is one of the success stories in underground Hip-Hop to come from my city, from producing the majority of the Poor Righteous Teachers first album, Holy Intellect, including "Rock Dis Funky Joint", but he's worked with cats like YZ and many more! I'm waiting to get some kind of confirmation, but my wife's Facebook Wall and status updates are getting blown up with "RIP Tony D" comments. I'll revisit this when I get more concrete info.

Wafeek "Sgt. Peppers": The homey Feekee done done it again. This time, he linked up with the Fab 5 to bring you some fuzzy funkery for your flavorful Fridays and Saturdays. This is taken from Feekee & The Flux Capacitor, a project that you should be somewhat familiar with... if not, go grab "Bad Check", then take a gander at the video for "My Friends". You see where we going right now? Good, now hop in the back seat, remove the seeds and stems, and watch out for the bats.

Cypher Linguistics ft. Tripp "ATL": I'm not saying Atlanta NEEDED a new anthem, but if someone from the A was looking for a 2009 anthem, this track from Cypher Linguistics should be it. Something to blast through your speakerbox during the hot and sticky nights.

The above pic is not representative of this track, but goddamn if Lauren London isn't the only reason to watch ATL. More leaks coming.

Ricky Raw & Wes Green "Tell Me No": Here's a few cuts from The Green Album, a collaborative project from Ricky Raw & Wes Green. Two talented individuals in the A, working on dope Hip-Hop? How the fuck you gonna deny this?

Beyonce ft. Kanye West "Ego (Remix)": I always wonder why, when tracks like this, niggas be like "yo, thanks to the gabillion people who sent this to me", but no one sends it to ME! LOL Shouts to Andrew for posting this one up. Yeezy speaks on his ego... B sounds like she's talking 'bout her ass. This has a nice, bright Sunday morning feel to it.

Rapper Big Pooh "Rear View Mirror" (prod. by 9th Wonder): Here's a cut from Pooh's Delightful Bars, which you can cop on iTunes right now; it hits stores on May 5th. Should be getting an interview with homey for RTD in the near future. Keep it locked!

Rich Boy ft. 607 "Drop": Little Rock, Arkansas' 607 hit me up with two verses on Rich Boy's latest banger. And dude has some spit in him. He's one of my current style of MCs - a nigga who speaks his mind, kickin' the truth without worrying about people being upset. The game needs more of this.

I'd go into some great detail about Universal/SRC/Studio 43 artist Marky's Nothing Is 43ver mini-album, but the nigga iLL Vibes did that already. I just recommend you download it, throw it on a CD or on your iPod, take some time out and really get into some good music. Then thank me. Then thank iLL.

No, I don't know why he says "whaaaat?" or whatever before the beat drops... everytime. I also don't know why he stays staring at the camera while making beats. I do recognize dude's talent, and felt it was only right to share this pon the world:

Should be an ill event... not only will it have the premiere for Che Grand's "Girls Talk" video, but the Lessondary crew will be in the house, as will Tiara Wiles, with music provided by 2 Hungry Bros.! For $0.99! WHAT THE FUCK!?!?!?!

Enig'ma "Paranoid" (prod. by J-Rell): It's been a minute since I've dropped some shit from the Perfection Music camp, but with RTD's recent anniversary, Enig'ma laced me with this exclusive. Dude wastes no time smackin' niggas in the face with that real talk. Throw this on in the headphones and watch your face transform to a screw, early.

This shit is too funny to me. I did wonder why they wouldn't let these niggas scrap it out. That's grown man - if you to the point where you want to fight, fight it out. That's what niggas do - don't throw punches, not connect, then be a ho:

Shouts to all the heads on twitter who watched this episode with me; that nigga Que is a ho, Robert is a ho and Brian is a ho. Bunch of ho ass niggas.

If you can see this, RTD isn't down. Hasn't been the case over the last few days; looks like my registrar, Register.com, has been having issues - but the way they operate, they don't tell a nigga SHIT. I need to switch companies...

Elucid "Laser Days": Oh how I've been waiting to leak some of Elucid's new work. Dude is on that SBD shit... silent but deadly, but he's also on that Sub Bass Diet, which is where this leak comes from. He's been really letting the flag fly over the ill soundscapes. Here he's taken aim at Kode9's latest, and the results are invigorating.

When I say dude has a satchel of succulent tracks ready for release, don't think I'm just flowering up the project. And when I say this nigga is going for your fucking jugular, you better watch your back... and your front.

Click the pic to download the latest single from Shuko's The Foundation. This shit is hard... its always refreshing to know that Canibus still sounds as hungry and angry as he has over the last decade plus.

Cy Yung ft. SiLent Knight "Forcefeel": Here's the next leak from Cy's Madicinal Libationz: Flow Springz Eternal, which is set to drop on April 13th. I had no idea homey was doing this with Dub MD, nor did I know that cats like Wordsmith, Junclassic, Ill Poetic and many more were going to be featured on this! Don't sleep when this one drops, trust!

Young Dro "Dro Rock Diamonds" (prod. by Fury): I fuck with this. I honestly had no idea what Gotty was passin' me, but that Biggie sample over that Al Green chop? Dro comes through with butter lyrics as well. Something to ease the loss of Tip, fa sho!

So I haven't heard from my homey J. Slikk in a bit. Not that I'm hyper-worried about dude, he just been out of the limelight for a hot minute. He hit me today like "yo I got some ish for you, check ya inbox". I peep it and he hits me with a track and an e-mail about a new EP he has in the works!

Escapism is a departure for his sound; he's not only purposefully going outside of his box, but he also plans on incorporating live instrumentation into the mix as well! While release date and feature MCs are not known at this time (possibly early June?), judging by the track he sent me (which reminds me of the DJ Krush/Mo Wax shit I used to fuck with circa 1995-1998), he has found a cozy pocket to explore, with the promise of his sounds going deeper.

D.Julien "Post-Experiment" (prod. by K.I.D.): D brings us up to speed on where his heads been at since the release of The Experiment. I saw that shit drop on a lot of sites, so I imagine he's been getting hit up from a lot of cats with praise. He keeps this up, more props shall come his way.